Arsenal are through to the last eight of the Champions League with a 2-2 draw at PSV Eindhoven in the second leg of the quarterfinals, 9-3 on aggregate. After the game, Arsenal coach Arteta accepted the official interview of the club, gave a high evaluation of the team’s performance, and especially praised the outstanding performance of the substitute players.
Arteta said: “We have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the second season in a row, which is an amazing achievement. For a club as big as Arsenal, such results are no easy feat. The 15-year gap has made us appreciate each moment more and made us realize how difficult it is to achieve this goal. The hard work and commitment of the players was the key to this result, but we will not be satisfied. We know our potential and we’re eager to keep going and make more history.”
Speaking about the games ahead, Arteta said: “Now we have to put our goals into practice. In the first leg, we should make full use of the home advantage, create a unique home atmosphere, and go all out to win. Every game is a new challenge and we have to stay focused and fight to go far.”
Arteta also paid special tribute to the performance of the substitutes. He said: “It’s been an impressive performance from the substitutes, who have been playing well despite not playing for a long time. Players such as Kivior and Ben White have done particularly well on the right, adapting to their new positions and roles and contributing to the team. I’m proud of the way they played and happy that they got a chance to play.”
Speaking about the team’s attacking side, Arteta said: “Without a player consistently scoring a lot of goals, we need to be more bloated. Zinchenko scored a great goal, Sterling had a great assist and Rice scored for the second game in a row. It was a great performance and we showed a lot of firepower in attack. Next, we will continue to work hard to go far in the Champions League.”
